The Hangover

Hello, Everyone

I’m back, it has been a while since my last post; however, I was busy with finishing school, my internship and starting summer back home. I know not great excuses for not taking five minutes out of my day to let everyone know which movies I have been watching.

Well, let’s get into it. The most recent movie that I have seen in theatres is The Hangover, quite possibly the funniest movie I’ve seen since Wedding Crashers. I know a bold statement, but I enjoyed a different cast other than the Judd Apatow crew. Although I have no hard feelings towards the Judd Apatow crew, I just found it refreshing to see a little bit of a different cast in this comedy.

The storyline is simple and I was a little nervous going into the movie, because I thought it was just going to be classic jokes and no real imagination to the movie. I was gladly mistaken, the movie flowed, the jokes were very imaginative and overall hidden meaning of friendship was a nice touch. The Hangover was a great comedy definitely worth seeing and buying when it hits stores.

There are a lot of future movies that I am interested in seeing, Transformers 2, Public Enemies, Funny People (I know Judd Apatow, but I’m a fan trust me), Inglourious Basterds, Away We Go and Adam just to name a few! I am very excited about the upcoming months and all the movies that are being released.

It is great to be back and hopefully I still have a few followers left. So until next time go out to the movies and make sure you get extra butter on your popcorn!

I love you man

Hey, Everyone

No I didn’t see I love you man, I just thought it was an interesting way to draw you in. Minus my recent trip to the movie theatre to watch Knowing, I have to admit I won’t be watching too many movies this weekend, and I haven’t been because of March. March Madness that is, I have the basketball fever right now. This is one of my favourite times of the year, it is the US College basketball tournament, nicknamed ‘March Madness’ because it truly is a madness. At any time any team can win; therefore, sending the other team home. It is an exciting time of year every game is usually on the edge of your seat, down to the last possession type of game. I do feel ashamed I will not be able to give you too many movie reviews, but as soon as the madness ends the movies will start up again. I do however want to purchase the new James Bond movie and do a whole review (or two) on the epic series.

I have to say that I can’t believe today my classmates and I wrote our final test of the year. Our teachers warned us that this day would come and come fast. I hope everyone enjoyed their year, I certainly did.

I hope everyone is excited for the Bond week review, until next week happy movie watching.

I almost forgot, movies to watch, well I recommend Fool’s Gold, Gladiator and The Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy.

Night at the Movies

Hey, Everyone

My last post of Wedding Crashers had great comments, most people liked the movie also, which was great to hear. Some were harder on Owen Wilson though, that’s okay he’s still golden in this movie.

This weekend I decided against renting, and against watching an already owned DVD, instead I took a trip to the theatre. At the theatre my roommate and I faced a tough decision, I Love you Man or Knowing, well that decision was made easier when we got to the front of the line and I love you man had just sold out. Decision made, we were seeing Knowing, starring Nick Cage. I was into seeing this movie actually, and sometimes I don’t mind Cage’s acting, he has done some shady roles in the past but I have enjoyed National Treasure, Face Off and some others. Okay Knowing, well the story started off fine, with some twists and turns about a small girl back in the ’50’s that had some sort of creepy ability. I sat in my seat (popcorn-less, not sure why) intrigued with the plot line, because 50 years later a time capsule was opened and this girl’s ability would be the focus for the whole movie. Cage a single father plays a University professor that has just lost his wife. He stumbles on this letter the girl wrote that is full of numbers, he naturally cracks the numbers and it is code for all the worlds disasters. To make a long story short he tries to stop one disaster but is unable, and then he realizes that strange men are after his son. As the story unfolds Cage realizes that the final code is for the end of the world. So I’m sitting in my seat saying okay Cage is going to save the world, I can deal with this because it has been a decent movie so far, so que the hero happy ending; however, instead the plot turns to the men that have been after his son, want to take him and this other little girl (Abby) with them. Well needless to say I wasn’t happy with the ending, and that is all I’m going to tell you about the plot, I can’t give away the ending.

I have also seen Last House on the Left at the theatre, I will talk about that movie in a later post. I have to get back to doing more homework, I can’t believe this is the last week of school.

Movies to watch this week, I recommend Casino Royale, Failure to Launch and The Bucket List.

The greatest (or it’s close)

Hey, Movie fans

This week I am writing a pure personal opinion piece. The movie I am reviewing is one of my favourite comedies of all-time, ‘Wedding Crashers’. The movie is hilarious and is a movie that I can watch over and over and OVER again. My girlfriend actually asked me the other day when was I going to get sick of watching this movie, my reply, “Never.” The movie contains two of my favourite actors, Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson. These two men are extremely clever with their comedy, and they shine in their roles in Wedding Crashers. The genius behind this movie relies on the script, and I’m guessing a bit of improv by these two actors. The lines in the movie are continuously funny and imaginative. The quick wit is hard to compare to any other movie that I have seen. The reason I chose this comedy over newer ones like Superbad or Step Brothers is the fact that the rants in Wedding Crashers are second to none. The movie relies very little on cursing to achieve humor, the rants and straight faced humor is timeless. Vince Vaughn is one of the best at what I like to call ‘real-life’ humor. He adds to the his lines by his facial expressions, which I think is the key to the movie. My roommate asked me why is this movie so funny, he asked if it was the script. I responded by saying it is the expressions for me that make the movie, the delivery by Vaughn and Wilson is extraordinary. If you watch the facial and body reactions to the lines by the characters in the movie, you will see what I am talking about, every actor in the movie does a great job at this. I laugh before I even hear them say anything. 

I would like to see a Wilson and Vaughn do another movie together. Other movies that I recommend are Old School, Four Christmases, Fred Claus, The Break-up, You, Me and Dupree, these are just a few titles with these actors in them. 

What do I recommend you watch this week, well check out Last House on the Left (in theatres), Run Fatboy Run, The Prestige, or Any Johnny Depp movie.

The Holiday

Hey, Everyone

I have had a couple of requests to hear my review of the Holiday. First I want to start off with a rating, which is 8.5/10. As you can see I really enjoy this movie. It actually is a movie that I have seen numerous times and can see again and again. The movie has a great cast that really worked well together, and I wasn’t sure that they would when I first saw the movie. But Jack Black is probably my favourite character in the movie, because he finally plays a different character. He is always playing the same type of person in every movie I see him in, he is branching out a little bit in this role. Another actor that surprised me in this movie was Jude Law, I usually really dislike him in movies (other than Enemy at the Gates), but he too played a great role. Both of these actors were great comic reliefs in the movie and blended well with their female counterparts.

The idea behind the movie, switching lives basically, for a while is something that got me thinking. Would I ever do what the two main women did in the movie? Pick up and leave my home and country to get away, not knowing anyone or even what the house looked like. I am pretty sure my answer would be sure why not. But it is a good question to ask yourself, would you do this? And if it were these two places (the ones in the movie) which house and country would you choose? I think I would choose LA because that was a huge house, and I would really want to surf and enjoy the sun, but that could be because we are still in winter type weather.

This movie is great all year round, and can be taken on a serious level, if you are going through maybe the same thing some of the characters are, for example being taken advantage of then put this movie in. Or if you just want a laugh and a light type of movie, this will also do the job.  

This movie has a perfect blend of comedy and romance to make it enjoyable by all. I have talked to a lot of guys that say they actually like this movie, and you know how people don’t think guys like romantic comedies, well i’m sure most of us really do, we are just chicken to admit it.

This week I recommend you watch, Dazed and Confused, Troy, A River Runs Through it and Michael Clayton.

Romantic Comedy week

Hey, everyone

This week I will be talking about a movie that I recommended to everyone, the romantic comedy Definitely Maybe, starring Ryan Reynolds.

Consider first that you are a successful father who has had a past filled with love, achievement and heart ache; however, the biggest achievement is your daughter. You do anything and everything for her, she is your world now. I say now because the mother is now your ex and you hate your job, it lacks your attention and passion. Reynolds played this character, the devoted father who has lost his ambition and his personal life has fallen apart. His daughter tries to repair her broken father, in her attempt to save her mother and father’s marriage, she stumbles upon the answer to Reynolds heart ache. Will (Reynolds) goes into detail about the history behind how his ex-wife and he met. The movie travels throughout three of Will’s girlfriends, the three women that he has loved. Will by the end rediscovers who his heart is connected to; however, the girl may or may not end up being his ex-wife, which is a surprise to the daughter. Along the way this movie is light hearted and shares a story that many people can relate to. Everyone wants to find love, sometimes love is blind and most of the time everyone makes mistakes because of love. This movie has all of that. Throughout the movie I chose my favourite girlfriend and  found myself quietly rooting for her.

April (Isla Fisher) plays the most loveable of all the girlfriends in my opinion, and she really establishes herself as a legitimate actor that is able to branch out from being the crazy girlfriend of Vince Vaughn in Wedding Crashers.

The movie allows you to reminisce about your life, where you have been and how did you get to where you are. During and after the movie the thought crossed my mind that the past is always present in our future; also we can never truely forget our past, it has helped shape who we are today.

Overall I give this movie an 8/10. This week I recommend everyone to go out and see Meet Joe Black for a romantic night, Forgetting Sarah Marshall for light comedy with a hint of  romance and if you’re heading to the theatres you might want to check out the romantic comedy He’s just not that into you.

The Express

Hey, everyone

I have found a winner for everyone this week, I give this movie an 8/10, the movie being The Express. The movie is about legendary football star Ernie Davis. I know not everyone likes sports movies, but if you do this one is  great and if you don’t it is still a very inspirational story.

Rudy, Friday Night Lights, and Varsity Blues are three football movies with underlining themes of strong emotion and the courage to over come odds to succeed. That same theme is true is the  movie that I recently watched, The Express.

The Express, a true story about Ernie Davis, is set in a time of racial prejudice  and new segregation in the schools. Ernie was an African American, and in football that still was not greeted with open arms. Davis over came odds and because of that he is a legend in football and as a person. He changed lives much like Jackie Robinson and Martin Luther King. Davis was keen on becoming the best football player he could be, not the best African American player, but the best period. That was the exact thought and determination that he wanted to instill in everyone around him.

The story

Ernie was a highly touted running back out of New York and was scouted to be the next great player at Syracuse University. He would be replacing an already trend setting player in Jim Brown. Davis came to play to prove himself and not to be anyone else. He did not want to be just a player and not be treated like a person because of his skin colour. He knew that the coaches needed to learn to treat him as a person first or else they would never win, and sure enough this happened and they won the national championship game, and Ernie was drafted into the NFL.

That is the movie and football side. How I felt about the movie is that this is an epic sports movie that moved my emotions beyond movies and sports. In the film was a great message of a man becoming a hero and fighting for his grandfather (who passes away). Ernie as great as he was played through a deadly disease, Leukemia. Ernie was destined for greatness and to change history. Through the movie he brings his team and his coaches together, understanding that they are all playing for each other. As the movie progresses the head coach changes, and he becomes a true friend and mentor to Ernie, and it was directly because Ernie shows the coach that he doesn’t have to see skin, but see the person. Ernie was meant to shape history but only for a short while. You get this impression because just over a year after he was done being the best in college, he collapsed on the field and never regained his strength. At a very early age, 23, Ernie Davis passed away. In his 23 years he changed lives, accomplished his goals and he was on this earth just long enough for the world to witness true courage. He was the first black player ever to receive the Heisman trophy, college footballs highest honour. Ernie fought his whole life for his dreams and never changed who he was that should be inspiring to all of us.

Watching this movie I moved from simply watching a sports film to watching an inspirational movie that challenged my emotions. The film gave me a vision of how kindness and passion can change lives and accomplish goals.

So as you can see the movies are getting better, I hope this week will be just as successful. Because Valentine’s  Day has just passed I am going to recommend two light hearted romantic comedies for everyone to watch, How to lose a Guy in 10 days and Definitely Maybe.

Lakeview Terrace

Hey everyone,

I hope some of you got a chance to see Surfer Dude, or at least thought about it. I know everyone is anticipating this week’s review, so here it is, Lakeview Terrace. 

I was anxiously waiting for this movie to hit the dvd shelves, and when it did I nabbed it and watched it last weekend. My excitement was quickly gone about 15 minutes into the movie. Needless to say the beginning of the movie is very slow and the story didn’t excite me like I was hoping.

The main actor Samuel L. Jackson played an overprotective father and neighbour. The movie is about a new couple starting their life in their very first home, and it just so happens they have Jackson as a next door neighbour. The story adds to Jackson’s character when we find out that he is also a long time LAPD officer with a bad attitude and questionable ethics. The new nieghbours played by Kerry Washington and Patrick Wilson, engage in regular daily activities, but anything that they do angers Jackson. The problem is not them, it is what they represent to Jackson. The movie is a back and forth of childish comments and actions, mostly by Jackson. Going into the movie I was expecting more suspense, drama and edge of your seat twists. Instead I got an almost 2 hour movie that basically didn’t go anywhere other than you realize why Jackson is so angry and vengeful by the end of the film. I don’t want to give the movie away incase some people are as excited as I was to see this movie. The ending is surprising and it’s the most action of the whole movie. 

I can’t say that any of the actors were exceptionally good, they played their roles and made a movie. Overall I would give this movie a 5/10.

I realize lately i’ve been rating sub-par movies, but trust me we will find a gem. 

till my next post, my recommendation this week is to watch a classic movie, I recommend Shindler’s List

Surfer Dude

Hey, everyone

I will be talking about movies every week, and I might throw in a favourite actor or two.

This week I will be talking about the blockbuster smash hit…Surfer Dude. I doubt many of you have heard about this movie but it is definitely not a hit movie. The only saving grace to this movie is the main actor, Matthew McConaughey. Basing a rating for this movie at first glance, I would give it around a 5/10; however I enjoyed this movie for the single fact of McConaughey being one of my favourite actors. He returns to his Dazed and Confused roots a little in this performance. He plays a “cool dude” surfer who will not sell his soul for reality TV or video games. Sounds silly, and it is, McConaughey wears board shorts throughout the entire movie, and no shoes. The budget was low for this movie, but its a relaxed and goofy Saturday afternoon movie. The plot is based around waves, smoking and living the surfer style. McConaughey will make you laugh. Don’t bother to go out of your way to watch it, but if it is on, give it a chance.